Inflatable life raft comprising improved canopy and supporting means therefor



L TAYLOR ETAL 2,804,633

M. INFLATABLE LIFE RAFT COMPRISING IMPROVED CANOPY AND SUPPORTING MEANS THEREFOR Filed July 15, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Sept. 3, 1957 INVENTOR. ROBERT J. FRAEBEL 8 MYRON L. TAYLOR BY aux/20%. 2%

ATTORNEY Sept. 3, 1957 M. TAYLOR ETAL INFLATABLE LIFE RAFT COMPRISING IMPROVED CANOPY AND SUPPORTING MEANS THEREFOR Filed July 15, 1954 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. ROBERT .1. FRAEBEL a MYRON L BY TAYLOR ATTORNEY Se t. 3, 1957 M. L. TAYLOR ETAL 2,804,633

INFLATABLE LIFE RAFT COMPRISING IMPROVED CANOPY AND SUPPORTING MEANS THEREFOR Filed July 15, 1954 3 hee h e 3 IN VEN TOR. ROBERT J. FRAEBEL a ag mou L. TAYLOR ATTORNEY tate 2,84,fi33 Patented Sept. 3, 1957 INFLATABLE LIFE RAFT COMPRISING IM- PROVED CANOPY AND SUPPORTING MEANS THEREFOR Myron L. Taylor, Brielle, and Robert .l. Fraebel, Red 7 I Bank, N. 5., assignors, by mesne assignments, tn The Garrett Corporation, Los Angeles, Calif., a corporation of California Application July 15, 1954, Serial No. 443,502

Claims. (Cl. 911) their backs to a surrounding buoyancy structure and with j the spray shield furled upon the roof of the canopy; to provide a structure permitting the use of canopy-supporting posts of relatively short length, for stowage in an accessory container of a correspondingly short dimension; to provide improved mounting means for such posts; to provide in an improved manner for securing the margin of the canopy roof to the supporting posts; and to provide these stated advantages in a reversible raft, so constructed as to have the same characteristics and to function in the same way with either side up.

Of the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary elevation, with parts sectioned and broken away, of a raft embodying our invention in its preferred form, the raft being in fully inflated condition and the canopy roof and spray shield in their functioning positions.

Fig. 2 is a repetition, but on a larger scale, of a portion of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is an elevation of one of the canopy-supporting posts and its mounting, from the right of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary elevation, with parts sectioned and broken away, corresponding to Fig. 1 except that the spray shield is shown in furled condition, as for ventilation in a hot climate.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary plan view of the structure as shown in Fig. 5.

The raft, of the reversible type, comprises the usual endless main buoyancy members 10, 10, of rubberized fabric, connected by at least one equalizer tube 11 and adapted to be automatically inflated, by the usual means, not shown, in the launching of the raft, with the exception of a laterinflated boarding-station portion between bulk-heads 12, 12. The boarding station is provided with a boarding stirrup 13 extending from the crotch of the buoyancy members 10, 10, being thus adapted to function in the same manner with either side of the raft up.

The raft also comprises a life line 14 and mast elements such as the oar 15 in accordance with prior practice.

The canopy, 16, is of such size that its periphery extends outward as far as the buoyancy members 10 extend, thus providing 'an eaves eifect for protection of persons sitting on the floor or deck 17 of the raft with their backs against the upper buoyancy member 10.

For holding the margin of the canopy thus extended, a spaced set of posts, 18, 18, are held in outwardly inclined positions by mountings hereinafter described and have engagement at their upper ends with the margin of the canopy. A spray shield 19 is seamed to the margin of the canopy and is provided with the usual elastic cord 29 for holding its lower edge in the crotch of the buoyancy members and with the usual draw-string 21, adapted to be knotted as at 22 in Fig. 1, for serving the same purpose in case of weakness or failure of the elastic cord.

At its upper end each post 18, of tubular form, has plugged into it a rubber head member 23 (see Fig. 4) recessed from its upper end as at 24 for yieldability, and externally of spear-head shape, for easy buttoning onto it of a grommet 25 mounted in the margin of the canopy.

The mounting of each post 18, considering the uppermost buoyancy member, comprises a flexible, grommeted bracket flap 26 seamed .to and projecting horizontally in ward from the top of the buoyancy member, and a molded tubular rubber bracket 27 having base flanges for strength of anchorage, the bracket being adhered to the inboard side of the buoyancy member 10 not far from the flap 26.

The post is adapted to be mounted by thrusting it upward and outward through the grommet of the flexible flap 26 and then reversing its movement to pass its lower end downward through the tubular rubber bracket 27.

For securing the lower end portion of the post at the proper height a spring-wire, bail-like member 28 (Figs. 2 and 4) has end portions, 28, 28 which are passed through holes in the wall of the post and then bent upwardly, as clearly indicated in dotted and full lines in Fig. 4, so that the bail is permanently hinged to the post.

The downwardly extending loop portion of the bail, wide enough to accommodate the tubular part of the rubber bracket, and having its side elements bowed for resilience, is adapted to be snapped into notches 28 28 formed in the annular lower end-edge face of the tubular post.

The construction as described is such that the posts hold the large canopy fully extended and yet are not required to be so long as posts seated upon the floor or deck of the raft, and they also present less obstruction to the occupants of the raft. i

To assure that the grommet 25 will stay buttoned upon the rubber head 23 of the post, the spray shield 19 has seamed to it just below its junction with the canopy a fabric taper loop 29, through which the post extends, the post thus extending into a pocket defined by the loop 29 and the margin of the canopy. A tie cord 30 extends through eyelets in the walls of the loop and through a hole in the post at a lower position and is adapted to be knotted as at 31, Fig. 2.

For reversibility of the canopy-and-spray-shield structure, to display alternatively a high-visibility side for rescue or a low-visibility side for camouflage, one of the taper loops, 29, 29, is mounted on each face of the spray shield, as shown clearly in Figs. 1 and 2.

The mode of assembly and of operation has been adequately brought out in the foregoing description.

Modifications are possible without departure from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A life raft comprising a flexible-walled, fluid distensible buoyancy member of substantially circular cross-sectional shape, a canopy-supporting post, and means for supporting said post, wholly from said buoyancy member, in an outwardly inclined position, said means comprising post-holding means secured to the inboard side of the fluiddistensible buoyancy member and wholly supported directly thereby.

2. A life raft as defined in claim 1 in which the defined post-holding means comprises an apertured fabric member secured to approximately the highest part of the buoyancy member and a molded rubber tubular member secured at a lower position to the inboard side of the buoyancy member and having the post in its tubular portion.

3. A life raft as defined in claim 1 in which the defined post-holding means comprises an apertured fabric member secured to approximately the highest part of the buoyancy member, and means for limiting" endwise movement of the post in the tubular portion of the tubular member.

4. A life raft as defined in claim 1 in which the defined post-holding means comprises an apertured fabric member secured to approximately the highest part of the buoyancy member, and means for limiting endwise movement of the post in the tubular portion of the tubular member, the last saidmeans comprising a resilient bail hinged on the post at the upper end of the tubular member and having a loop portion adapted to be snapped onto the lower end face of the post with the loop portion extending about the post-engagingtubular member.

5. A life raft comprising a buoyancy structure, a canopy having marginal holes and means for supporting said canopy from said structure, said means comprising a spaced set of canopy-supporting post structures mounted on said buoyancy structure and engaging the margin of said canopy, each of the post structures comprising a post and a resilient rubber head member permanently mounted thereon and having a portion adapted to be projected through one of the marginal holes of the canopy and, by reason of its resilient deformability, adapted to become interlocked with the wall of the hole against vertical movement of the margin of the canopy. therefrom.

6. A life raft comprising a buoyancy structure, a canopy having marginal holes and means for supporting said canopy from said structure, said means comprising a spaced set of canopy-supporting post structures mounted on said buoyancy member and engaging the margin 'of said canopy, each of the post structures comprising a post and a resilient rubber head member thereon adapted to be mounted in one of the marginal holes of the canopy, a spray shield marginally secured to the margin of the canopy, and hold-down means for securing an upper marginal part oi the spray shield to the post.

7. A life raft comprising a buoyancy structure, a canopy having marginal holes and means for supporting said canopy from said structure, said means comprising a spaced set of canopy-supporting post structures mounted on said buoyancy member and engaging the margin of said canopy, each of the post structures comprising a post having shouldered'meansth'ereon adapted to be mounted in one of the marginal holes of the canopy, a spray shield 4 marginally secured to the margin of the canopy, and holddown means" for securing an upper marginal part of the spray shield to the post.

8. A life raft comprising a buoyancy structure, a canopy having marginal socket elements and means for supporting said canopy from said structure, said means comprising a spaced set of canopy-supporting post structures mounted on said buoyancy member and engaging the margin of said canopy, each of the post structures comprising a post having means thereon adapted to be mounted in one of the marginal socket elements of the canopy, a spray shield marginally secured to the margin of the canopy, and holddown means for securing an upper marginal part of the spray shield to the post, the last said means comprising a flexible loop secured to the spray shield and extending about the post, and tie means for securing said loop to the post.

9. A life raft comprising a buoyancy structure, a canopy having means, spaced along its margin, defining respective flexible post-receiving pockets, and means for supporting said canopy from said structure, said means comprising a set of canopy-supporting posts mounted upon the said buoyancy structure and adapted for mounting of their upper ends in the said pockets respectively, and hold-down means for retaining the margin of the canopy with the upper ends of the posts in the said'pockets.

10. A raft as defined in claim 9 and including a spray shield, at part of the pocket-defining means being mounted directly upon the spray shield.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,335,648 Coleman Nov. 30, 1943 2,367,902 Taylor Jan. 23, 1945 2,413,226 Hallward Dec. 24, 1946 2,554,688 Vollweiler May 29, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 261,533 Switzerland May 15, 1949 460,626 France Dec. 8, 1913 OTHER REFERENCES Popular Mechanics, July 1951, pages 84-85, 9-2.1. 

